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June 21, 2018

Photo by Leesy Latronica

The Essential Summer Cheese Board with Cider-Infused Apricot Jam

By Leesy Latronica

Backyard entertaining and small bite spreads go hand-in-hand. When one hand is reaching for a thoughtfully curated cheese board and the other is nursing a glass of your favorite refreshing cider, you’ve reached nirvana. Fortunately, it’s easy to achieve your summertime snacking dreams with just a handful of ingredients — and a bottle of that aforementioned cider, of course.

Cheese selection: Offer three or more cheese options that strike a balance of soft, hard, rich and mild. A variety of cow’s milk, goat’s milk and sheep’s milk cheese is best. We used Pacific Northwestern picks including the Brie-reminiscent Mt. Townsend Creamery Seastack, buttery Cascadia Creamery Sleeping Beauty and Salt Spring Island Cheese Co. Basil Chèvre for a fresh pop of herb flavor and color.

Pairings: Build your cheese board as minimalistic or extravagant as you please. For this rendition, baguette slices were ideal vessels for spreading with cheese and smearing with jam. Sprinkle a few handfuls of your favorite nut variety (we used Marcona almonds) or another accompaniment to add some crunchy texture.

Finally, serve with cider-infused apricot jam for just the right sweet-to-tangy ratio — thanks to a hint of acid from tart crab apple cider from Dragon’s Head Cider on Washington’s Vashon Island and some lemon for good measure.

Wash the apricots, cut into halves, remove kernels and dice into roughly half-inch cubes, amounting to about 4 cups. Add to a saucepan with the cider, sugar and lemon juice and begin to cook slowly over medium heat. Simmer for approximately 10 minutes, stirring regularly, then turn to medium-low heat. Continue cooking and stirring for 15-20 minutes or until apricots have mostly broken down and jam is thickened. Use the cold plate method (or other preferred jellying point test method) to check doneness.